QUICK NEWS, 4-5: BOULDER WIND POWER BREAKS IN; AZ SUN TOO POPULAR; MILITARY BUYING HAWAII BIOFUELS; STANDARDS FOR SOLAR POWER PLANTS

BOULDER WIND POWER BREAKS IN
Wind turbine firm selects Boulder
David Clucas, April 2, 2010 (Boulder County Business Report)

"…Boulder Wind Power, headed by [former National Renewable Energy Laboratory chief engineer] Sandy Butterfield, plans to [design and build the next generation of wind turbines and] employ 15 people by this summer, and possibly 30 people by the end of the year…It is looking to attract wind, electrical, structural and mechanical engineers and analysts.

"Butterfield, the company's chief executive officer…was a co-owner of ESI, a company he later sold that developed and sold small wind turbines…New Enterprise Associates, a California-based venture capital firm…is providing Boulder Wind Power with a "substantial" but undisclosed amount of financing…"

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"Boulder Wind Power will focus on designing, developing and eventually manufacturing large megawatt wind turbines, primarily for onshore and perhaps offshore use. The turbines will feature redesigned "direct-drive generators" - the key innovation and challenge for the company, Butterfield said.

"…Frequently, engineers will design a gearbox to speed up the rotors to match the generators - it's the least expensive solution today but not the most mechanically reliable…Direct-drive generators are more reliable - everything is moving at the same speed, Butterfield said. But direct-drive generators make the wind turbine heavy and expensive…"

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"…[Butterfield believes he can make reliable direct-drive, utility-scale turbines as light and inexpensive as today’s gear-driven systems]…Butterfield hopes to have a proof of concept within two years, and a prototype machine in three years. The large 1.5-megawatt wind turbines would span about 88 to 105 meters in diameter…

"Butterfield said he chose Boulder because…[competent engineers will be attracted]…Jim Smith, vice president of engineering and a principal of Boulder Wind Power, is moving from Connecticut, after working 30 years for General Dynamics…There's also local talent and expertise…"


AZ SUN TOO POPULAR
APS moves to reduce solar rebates
Ryan Randazzo, April 3, 2010 (The Arizona Republic)

"Arizona Public Service Co. has cut the amount of money it pays customers who put solar panels on their roofs and said the reductions are needed because the program is so popular it was going to run out of money by June.

"The changes, if approved by regulators, will add to the out-of-pocket expenses for customers installing solar panels. But officials said that demand is soaring and that reducing the subsidies will put pressure on solar companies to cut expenses and drive down the cost of solar installations…The five-member commission must vote on the proposed changes. The regulators intended to cut the solar incentives over time but not this fast…APS [has] paid customers $3,000 per kilowatt of power, or about $18,000 for the average [$30,000-to-$35,000 6-kilowatt] solar-power system…"

Sun like this insists on itself. (click to enlarge)

"More APS home and business customers put solar panels on their roofs last year than in the previous eight years combined, and about 113 residential customers a week have applied for solar rebates from the utility this year…APS asked regulators [for the reduction March 31]…and said that any new rebate applications since [then] will not get the full rebate…

"The rooftop solar panels provide electricity for homes in daylight, and customers rely on power from their utility at night or when they use more energy than the panels are making. Surplus electricity is fed to the power grid and credited to the customer…The remaining $12,000 to $17,000 out-of-pocket expense is eligible for a 30 percent federal tax credit and $1,000 incentive from the state…"

The number one right in the Solar Bill of Rights. (click to enlarge)

"APS is proposing to cut its rebate to $2,150 a kilowatt, which would offer customers a $12,900 rebate on a 6-kilowatt system instead of $18,000. That is a $5,100 increase in out-of-pocket expenses, but the potential federal tax credit would be slightly larger because of the higher price…

"All APS residential customers pay a maximum $3.46 monthly tariff that the company uses to fund renewable-energy projects, including rooftop solar and power plants that use solar, biomass or other alternative sources…The maximum tariff for business customers is $128.70 a month, and industrial customers have a $386 monthly cap…APS will collect about $86.7 million from the tariffs this year…"


MILITARY BUYING HAWAII BIOFUELS
Hawaii crops, algae may get funded for military biofuel; Pentagon makes big push for ways to cut dependence on oil
William Cole, April 3, 2010 (Honolulu Advertiser)

"The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Navy are hoping to jumpstart the growth of crops and algae in Hawai'i that can be used for military fuel as part of an aggressive drive by the Pentagon to reduce its dependence on foreign oil and increase renewable energy sources…The Navy and the Agriculture Department want to evaluate the use of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding to [as soon as possible] set up biofuel projects in Hawai'i…

"How much funding remains unclear, but Hawai'i was selected for the initial collaboration between the two federal entities…[because its 90% reliance on imported oil makes the possibility of growing economically-viable biofuels more likely]…Hawai'i's biofuel crop pursuit is in its infancy, and challenges include the need to build an entire pipeline — crop selection, growth and refinement of oils — to start satisfying Navy needs."

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"But the U.S. military is moving aggressively toward renewable energy sources — and the demand for it…The Air Force recently flew an A-10 Thunderbolt II on a biofuel blend of oil from camelina, a plant related to mustard, and conventional JP-8 jet fuel…Tests with F-15 and F-22 fighters and C-17 Globemaster III cargo planes are expected to follow.

"The Navy, meanwhile, is expanding tests of biofuel blends in marine gas turbines that it uses in the surface fleet and tactical vehicles…On Earth Day, which is April 22, the Navy will fly a "Green" Hornet F/A-18 on a biofuel and jet fuel mix…By 2016, the Navy wants to deploy a "Great Green Fleet" that will be powered entirely by alternative fuels…"

President Obama with the "Green" Hornet F/A-18 (click to enlarge)

"…[Hawai’I] has some biofuel production, but most of it comes from waste cooking oil and not from crops or algae…The U.S. military consumes about 80 million gallons of jet fuel a year in Hawai'i…Dovetailing with the military's pursuit of biofuel crops is interest by Hawaiian Electric..[which] is looking for a long-term supply of biofuels made from feedstocks produced and processed in Hawai'i…What Hawai'i farmers could grow [is undetermined]…

"The Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is betting on algae. DARPA [expects] large-scale refining operations nationwide could within a few years produce 50 million gallons of fuel per year…The goal is to get algae jet fuel down to $3 or below per gallon…[A]bout eight companies [are] either doing or planning to do algae work in Hawai'i…[T]he Navy [will also] grow [northern Europe’s] camelina in Hawai'i to make biofuel…[It] grows up to 3 feet tall and has seeds containing 35 percent oil…[Also possible is] jatropha, a shrubby tree that grows on arid land and is suited to the tropics and subtropics, and whose seeds also are a source of biofuel…"


STANDARDS FOR SOLAR POWER PLANTS
CSP industry standards just around the bend
Emma Clarke, 26 March 2010 (CSP Today)

"…[CSP] component suppliers are seeking certification as a means of levelling the playing field; standardisation would enable developers to compare products and reduce costs; and it would enable financiers to more easily assess the quality of plants…[N]o official standards exist for components specific to CSP plants, such as mirrors, receiver tubes and trackers. But a number of initiatives underway…

"The German Aerospace Centre (DLR) has established a test and qualification center…[and] defined a set of quality criteria and test procedures…that can measure mirror shape and reflectivity, concentrator structure accuracy, thermal losses of receivers, as well as performance of solar fields."

Pipes at the oldest operating solar power plant in the U.S. at Kramer Junction in California's Mojave Desert. (photo by NewEnergyNews - click to enlarge)

"While the tests have been specifically designed for parabolic trough technology, some (such as for mirror reflectivity) can be applied to other CSP technologies such as heliostats and linear Fresnel…[N]o standards exist to define the size of mirrors…

"Customers and suppliers of CSP technology can already use these test methods to evaluate [performance]…But these are not yet official standards…[T]he Spanish Association for Standardisation and Certification, is also [working on standards]…for CSP systems, components and storage…"

The turbine at the eSolar power tower project in California's Mojave Desert is rehabilitated from a decommissioned natural gas plant. (photo by Alexandra Kravetz - click to enlarge)

"NREL has lead an initial effort to develop such guidelines for parabolic trough solar fields, and is about to release a "Best Practices Handbook" for data collection and monitoring of direct normal irradiation (DNI) solar radiation for CSP systems…[T]he American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) has established a committee that will develop procedures for testing…Ultimately, the aim is to co-ordinate work internationally…

"…[D]ifficulties will not be in short supply. One concern is that standardisation will stifle innovation, since there would be less motivation to improve components if a standard sets good quality performance at a lower level…Another challenge will be devising standards that reflect the different types of abrasion in global regions…A great deal can also be drawn from standards already developed… But…the industry should expect to wait between 18 to 24 months for the first standards to appear."